Two Arkansas men are headed to prison after a deadly dispute over money ended with two men shot inside a home.
Billy Joe Nelson, 45, pleaded guilty in May to two counts of first-degree murder and one count of being a habitual offender in the deaths of 66-year-old Jay Collins and 70-year-old Donny Shipp.
Nelson was sentenced to 160 years in prison, with two 80-year sentences ordered to run one after the other.
This week, Eddie Sterling, 54, pleaded guilty to hindering apprehension and tampering with physical evidence. He was sentenced to 20 years behind bars.
The deadly shooting happened in late June 2025 at Collins’ home on Lands End Road in Chester, Arkansas, a small Ozarks town about 30 miles northeast of Fort Smith, near the Oklahoma border.
Crawford County Sheriff Daniel Perry said both victims were found shot inside the home late at night.
Investigators said Nelson and Sterling had gone to the house earlier that same day and left after an argument over money.
“There was some discussion between the two about some debt between the families,” Perry told local station 40/29 News. “And one had made a threat to the other one that if the debt didn’t get taken care of, that there would be consequences for their actions.”
Authorities said Nelson and Sterling later returned to the home, where another confrontation broke out.
“Words were exchanged, and they pulled a gun and started shooting,” Perry said.
Nelson fired multiple shots, killing both men, investigators said. Collins died at the scene, while Shipp was airlifted to a nearby hospital before later dying from his injuries.
Sterling did not fire the gun, according to authorities, but investigators said he played a role in getting the weapon.
“Eddie Sterling said he went and got the gun,” Perry said. “He is not the shooter, but he was the one that went and retrieved the gun for the two.”
According to an affidavit obtained by KNWA, Sterling told investigators he drove Nelson to the house so they could “work out a deal to protect [Sterling] and his family.”
Sterling said he did not know Nelson planned to hurt anyone.
He also admitted he positioned the car so they could leave quickly “in case something happened,” according to the affidavit.
Sterling told investigators he stayed in the vehicle while Nelson went inside the home. Moments later, he heard more than five gunshots echo through the wooded area near the Boston Mountains.
Then, according to the affidavit, Nelson jumped into the vehicle and shouted, “Go!”
Both men have now been sentenced for their roles in the deadly confrontation, with Nelson receiving a far harsher sentence as the shooter and Sterling receiving 20 years for helping afterward.
